Jose Mourinho is stalking Willian, says the Daily Mail, but for the moment Chelsea are “reluctant to sell”.
The Brazilian midfielder is a favourite of the Manchester United manager and he was first linked to Old Trafford last month.
Since then the rumours have strengthened and the Mail says that United “have made enquiries” about the 29-year-old South American playmaker.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
With Willian struggling for regular game time at Stamford Bridge, Mourinho believes he can lure him north, but Chelsea will only consider a sale if “they receive an extraordinary offer”.
Blues boss Antonio Conte is keen to keep his squad intact for the second half of the season, and would not want to see one of his players join a club which is likely to be challenging them to see who finishes second in the league behind Manchester City.
Meanwhile The Sun reports that Barcelona are interested in Daley Blind. Taking Spanish rag Marca as the source of its story, the paper says that Barca coach Ernesto Valverde is tailing the Dutch international with an eye on a January bid.
Blind, who is out of contract at the end of the season, has seen his career stagnate at Old Trafford this season and the Sun says that Blind could be “booted out of United next month, albeit for a small fee”.
Apparently the Spanish giants value Blind’s versatility with the 27-year-old able to play in midfield, left-back and at the heart of defence, although so far this season he’s managed just four league appearances under Mourinho.
The fact that Javier Mascherano is leaving Barcelona for the Chinese super league next month gives credence to the rumours and United are likely to cash in on Blind rather than watch him leave on a free transfer in June.
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
-
Manchester United and Mason Greenwood: duty of care or double standards?Talking Point The 21-year-old footballer’s possible return has provoked an outpouring of dismay from supporters
-
2023-2024 Premier League predictions: champions, relegation and golden boot
feature A look at the top flight talking points and pundit picks for the new season
-
Man City: can ‘one of the best sides in history’ win the treble?
feature Guardiola’s Premier League champions have two more trophies in their sights
-
Premier League: Man City vs. Arsenal predictions
feature What the pundits say about tonight’s title race showdown at the Etihad
-
Antonio Conte leaves Tottenham after ‘extraordinary’ rant at players
feature After another year without a trophy, Spurs are now searching for a new manager
-
Liverpool 7 Man Utd 0: ‘welcome to Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool 2.0’
feature Anfield’s ‘new front three’ were on fire in the humbling of their bitter rivals
-
Man Utd win the Carabao Cup: how Erik ten Hag has ‘transformed’ the Red Devils
feature United lifted their first silverware since 2017 after beating Newcastle at Wembley
-
Man City’s financial charges: what next for the Premier League champions?
feature The club is alleged to have breached financial rules around 100 times over a nine-year period
